Bedtime Story (1941)Playwright tries to stop his wife from retiring so he can star her in his next play. Director:Alexander Hall |
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Bedtime Story (1941)Playwright tries to stop his wife from retiring so he can star her in his next play. Director:Alexander Hall |
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| Complete credited cast: | |||
| Fredric March | ... |
Luke Drake
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| Loretta Young | ... |
Jane Drake
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Robert Benchley | ... |
Eddie Turner
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Allyn Joslyn | ... |
William Dudley
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| Eve Arden | ... |
Virginia Cole
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Helen Westley | ... |
Emma Harper
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Joyce Compton | ... | |
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Tim Ryan | ... |
Mac
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Olaf Hytten | ... |
Alfred
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| Dorothy Adams | ... |
Betsy
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Clarence Kolb | ... |
Collins
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Andrew Tombes | ... |
Pierce
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A Braodway playwright wants to keep on writing plays for his wife to star in, but all she wants is to retire to Connecticut and, following a few 'worlds-apart" discussion of the issue, they get a divorce. The actress marries a banker in a fit of pique only to quickly discover the divorce was not valid. She communicates this information to her not-yet ex-husband and he, to prevent consummation of the invalid marriage rescues her by sending plumbers, waiters, porters, chambermaids, bellhops, desk clerks, exterminators and, finally, a crowd of roistering conventioneers to the suite to ensure no bedtime story would take place there. Written by Les Adams <longhorn1939@suddenlink.net>
Popular dramatic starlet on the Broadway stage announces her retirement and plans to move to a Connecticut farm with her playwright husband; he has other ideas...and a great new play waiting in the wings. Romantic complications and screwball shenanigans featuring two stars (Fredric March and Loretta Young) who are very charming though very grounded. One doesn't quite believe March as this comically half-crazed writer trying to keep his marriage and his project afloat, nor Young as a youthful, beautiful actress eager to permanently put her successes behind her. It doesn't really jell, and the large amounts of money we're told about--flowing freely from one wallet to the next--is perplexing; instead of anticipating the happy ending, we're left wondering who's footing the bill for all this. Production values high, supporting cast (including great sidekick Robert Benchley and scene-stealer Eve Arden) first-rate. The stars themselves work well together, yet this vehicle doesn't feel tailored to their personalities (March's, in particular), turning a friendly comedy into a rather lumpy one. ** from ****